Cannes Film Festival 2016 style roundup: glam-chic rules the red carpet

There wasn't much in the way of risk-taking during this year's Cannes fortnight, let alone originality or OTT flamboyancy, as stars stuck to classic glamour with chic and sophisticated styles. The 69th edition of the Cannes Film Festival (May 11-22, 2016) did, however, see one surprise guest, as color came to a line-up of full ball gowns, floaty frocks and shift dresses. Here's a roundup of the biggest trends spotted on the Cannes red carpet this year.

There was no major red carpet gaffe to get onlookers chattering at this year's event, whether in terms of fashion disasters, wardrobe malfunctions or crazy hairstyles (well, almost), and no one outfit was singled out as a focal point for fashionistas. All in all, this 69th edition of the Cannes Film Festival remained true to its essence, with long trains, fairytale ball gowns, embroidery, and sheer transparent effects, showcasing designs from the biggest names in fashion.

Cannes does color

Although gray skies loomed over the Croisette strip when the festival opened on May 11, the gloomy weather didn't stop a host of movie stars stepping out in the most colorful pieces from their wardrobes -- or, more precisely, from the collections of ready-to-wear and haute-couture labels.

A line-up of brightly colored designer gowns were paraded on the famous Palais des Festivals steps, in a selection of vivid, summery shades. Yellow, was, however, a standout color, seen in several hues at this year's event. Anna Kendrick, Riley Keough, Kirsten Dunst, Jessica Chastain, Amal Clooney and Heidi Klum at the amfAr charity gala, all slipped into this sunny shade, rocking the color in very different styles.

Pink was another popular color in Cannes this year (Araya Hargate, Cheryl Cole, Natasha Poly, Uma Thurman), as well as blue -- one of this season's hottest hues (Bianca Balti, Blake Lively, Cindy Bruna, Carolina Parsons) -- and, of course, red (Lily Donaldson, Katy Perry, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley). As usual, Kate Moss chose to stand out from the crowd with a candy bright orange dress.

Classic glamor

In spite of the strong trend for colorful outfits, the Cannes Film Festival remained an understatedly stylish affair, on the whole, with classic shades of black, white, lamé and metallics. Embroidery was popular on the red carpet, along with tulle, organza, sequins and glitter. And while glamour is de rigueur at Cannes, some stars spiced up the look with a more sensual -- sometimes downright sexy -- slant, with plunging necklines and sky-high slits (Bella Hadid and Alessandra Ambrosio definitely get the Palme d'Or on that front).

Some guests went for dresses with flowing trains or full-volume skirts, which always do the trick, such as Carolina Parsons, Li Yuchun, Araya A. Hargate, Malika Sherawat, Zuo An Xiao, Li Bingbing, Sonam Kapoor, Jourdan Dunn and Hofit Golan.

But, on the whole, gowns were discreetly stylish, with many taking the form of shift dresses with relatively straight and floaty cuts. Embellishments such as feathers, lace, gemstones, sheer fabrics and discreet prints were also popular. Kendall Jenner, Leïla Bekhti, Eva Longoria, Milla Jovovich, Julia Roberts, Marion Cotillard, Karlie Kloss, Adriana Lima and Luma Grothe were all spotted in these kinds of gowns.

Only a handful of stars picked mini-dresses (Mélanie Thierry, Chloë Sevigny) or jumpsuits (Victoria Beckham) for this year's red carpet. However, capes proved popular at Cannes 2016, seen in several different styles (Aishwarya Rai, Petra Nemcova).